When I lived in Canberra, this blog was a diary of my lunchtime adventures in the Australian National Botanic Gardens. Seeing so many interesting things each lunchtime gave me the idea to practice my photography and share my experiences. In 2011 I moved to Brisbane and gained a position as a research scientist at CSIRO. This blog follows my latest adventures as I learn about the wonderful wildlife in this region.

Sunday, 2 September 2012

A koala at the top of the mountain

Another beautiful Sunday evening, so it was hard to resist another stroll up Mount Gravatt. So far we have only spotted Koalas in two areas of the mountain, in the area between Gertrude Petty place to just below Federation Lookout, both of which are near the base of the mountain. We have not heard of Koalas appearing near the top and haven't seen any up there ourselves, despite always keeping our eyes peeled. The top of the mountain has a car park, picnic sites, a restaurant and the lookout, so we assumed the Koalas preferred the more tranquil lower parts of the mountain.

We often mistake termite nests for koalas, or hanging branches in the tall trees, and its not until we zoom in with binoculars or my camera that we can tell for sure. Initially, this seemed like such an occasion, when Edd my partner asked 'is that a Koala?' as we neared the very top of the mountain. However, although what Edd had been looking at was a dead branch, if he hadn't said that then I wouldn't have looked and spotted this Koala sitting very high up in a gum tree! As we stood watching, a lady walked past with a dog off it's lead. When I mentioned to her that the rule on the mountain was to keep dogs on a lead, as dogs are one of the biggest threats to the survival of the endangered Koala (like the one in the tree, right there!), her response was that it is a well behaved dog and she is a local. Nothing like the locals setting an example though, is there?!

Hi Denis, thanks, I wish more people would understand how special it is to see koalas on Mt Gravatt. Whenever we point them out excitedly to people they tend to look at us funny, glance up politely without actually seeing, mutter something, then wander off (with their dogs straining at the leash)... one man even grumbled about them, calling them 'grumpy buggers'!

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About Me

My name is Dr Hazel Parry and I work for CSIRO Ecosystem Sciences as a Research Scientist. I specialise in spatial ecology and ecological modelling.
My research interests include: agent-based and individual-based modelling, computer simulation of crop pest population dynamics and dispersal, grid computing, geographical information systems, environmentally sensitive farming and predicting the implications of policy and environmental change for agricultural landscapes.
Publications